20070918Notes

Notes from 18 September 2007 meeting

Introductions of meeting presenters by Margot Smith, chair of the meeting, were followed by a short report from the LOCCNA Traffic Committee by Steve Martinot.

Our guest speaker was Mr. Amiri, traffic engineer from the city of Berkeley. He explained that he has only been with the city for 6 months and apologized in advance for answers he did not know and promised to follow up on them for us. He also stated that he would take the LOCCNA Traffic Committee's report back to his aides to get a response.

Items Mr. Amiri covered:

• • No more traffic speed bumps will be put anywhere in Berkeley. They don't work.

  • the traffic dept. has many other tools to help solve traffic problems. These include:

  • radar ( some installed on a permanent basis) , roundabouts, lighted crosswalks,

  • flashing yellow lights, signage, and "communication with public safety (i.e. the police)

  • for enforcement of these tools.

  • 4 way stop signs make speeding worse.

  • Mr.Amiri will take the neighbors concerns back to his department but warned that

  • the budget for traffic improvements is extremely limited, citing the example that one traffic light

  • costs about $100,000.

Concerns of neighbors brought up to Mr.Amiri:

• • traffic and speeding on Spruce St. between Rose and Vine which has gotten worse since

  • the addition of a traffic circle at Vine and Spruce. Mr.Amiri noted that the residents there

  • wanted to keep the stop signs at the circle. Many drivers don't stop.

  • the effect of all the hills traffic that gets funneled through Spruce and Euclid onto Rose,

  • Oxford and Shattuck causing bottle necks at rush hours.

  • traffic lights at Rose and Oxford intersection should be timed to accommodate traffic at

  • specific times during the day. Many pedestrians unable to cross in time. A designated

  • left turn lane and signal would be desirable and also at Cedar and Oxford, on Cedar, as well

  • as on Cedar at M.L.King Jr. Way .

  • large, busy streets like Shattuck, Univeristy and M.L. King Jr. Way should have timed traffic

  • signals so that if one drives at one steady speed one can get all green lights.

  • area in front of French Hotel on Shattuck Ave. people speed etc. Speed bump?

  • intersection at Rose and Walnut is very dangerous. Needs flashing yellow light that turns

  • red when pedestrian pushes button. Accident reports need to be taken seriously.

  • Rose & Spruce intersection (3-way stop) problems...currently a choose-your-own

  • plan: yield/stop/rolling stop/no stop intersection -- lack of clarity about what

  • drivers should do there,

Mr.Amiri welcomes any other suggestions. You can email him at: wamiri@ci.berkeley.ca.us

Thanks to Estelle Jelinek for inviting Mr.Amiri.

Julie Ross gave a short presentation on what had happened since our last meeting and this present one. After

Julie spoke there was discussion about who/what is LOCCNA amongst the attendees.

She presented a petition in opposition to the plaza and emphasized this is not LOCCNA sponsored. She also told of how our (also non LOCCNA) petition got the drive-by mail box on the corner of Shattuck and Vine reinstalled.

There was discussion of who is represented by LOCCNA and what our purpose is. Mentioned: to communicate about important neighborhood issues. Differences are represented at meetings and in emails. Grow voluntarism, open to all neighbors who want to attend meetings.

Other questions raised: Does anyone have evidence that high rises would necessarily follow if Plaza were built, because of wide sidewalks? In response ABAG's plan for city density was mentioned,with intention to build all the way up Shattuck to Rose St. Other issues such as Safeway's rebuilding were mentioned.

David Cohn presented a short talk about Kitchen Democracy and how the votes collected are not really representative in the way KD says they are. Comments by David and others included: KD is a good place for information and discussions of issues, but should not be used by the city council to represent actual votes. Gordon Wozniak paid $3000 of citizens money to KD. Berkeley city has the technology to set up its own polling site if it wished. It was suggested we tell our council persons that we do not want them to use KD as representing citizens' votes on issues.

There was more discussion about the NSPI, how destructive to businesses' any construction would be between Vine and Rose on Shattuck. It was rumored that the NSPI plan is dead. Is there a way to set up something else that works better? Perhaps going back to the original 2001 plan and looking at what works and doesn't?

Mary Ann Brewin introduced the liaisons who were there and noted items the liaisons put on the agenda for the North Shattuck Coordinating Committee meeting Sept. 26. Other items suggested by the neighbors in the audience were also included:

These are:

1. Meeting logistics:

• • LOCCNA liaisons want to be participate in setting agenda for all NSCC meetings.

  • We suggest rotating Chairpersons and perhaps meeting venues (and times?)

  • We do not want to limit our liaison attendance to 3 persons necessarily.

2. Meeting goals:

• • What is purpose/goal of our NSCC meetings?

  • Is NSCC to propose alternate plans for the Vine-Rose area along Shattuck?

  • What is the current status of NSPI plan, in fact?

3. LOCCNA activities:

• • Reports from LOCCNA traffic, beautification, and parking committees are at http://home.comcast.net/~loccna/ . Copies of Vision Statement available at meeting 9/26.

4. Concerns/questions about area and BID:

• • Where does Shattuck corridor start and end (in ABAG and/or city plans)? Is there any

  • correlation with North Shattuck area plan of 1980's (2001?)

  • How much of BID's money has been spent on redesigning the area? Or on what, period?

  • Is there a conflict if BID represents merchants and also property owners in the area?

Other items suggested include: Is there any evidence that there is not a plan to build high rises? Go back to original 2001 plan and reduce/refine (there were objections to this). We need to find a process by which we can create a plan. Concern was expressed about the pizza eaters on the median strip; the congestion in front of the newly remodeled Cheeseboard.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 pm.